A bipartisan bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on Monday by Rep. Sam Graves (R-MO) and Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA) would levy an annual fee on EV owners to fund road maintenance.
Annual Road Repair Fee
The BUILD America 250 Act, which is more than 1,000 pages long, has sought an annual fee of $130 for EV owners, as well as $35 for Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs), with the taxes also getting an annual increase of $5, to a cap of $150 and $50, respectively. The fees applicable shall "terminate on October 1, 2036," the bill says.
States would be in charge of collecting the taxes; failure to do so would result in the Federal government withholding transportation funds, the bill said. Notably, there isn't an annual tax on gas vehicles. Instead, owners pay Federal and State Gas taxes every time they refill at the gas station, which is then used to maintain roads and highways.
Graves had earlier proposed a bill seeking $250 in annual fees on EVs, which was passed by the House. The bill had sought a $100 fee on PHEVs as well. "For far too long, EVs have operated on our nation's roads without paying into the system," Graves had said last year.
Autonomous Trucking Rules
The bill also proposes rules for autonomous semi trucks, proposing that the Transportation Secretary "establish and maintain a performance-based safety standard for ADS-equipped commercial motor vehicles to operate in interstate commerce" no later than two years after the bill is passed.
The bill outlines that the standards would apply to Level 3, Level 4 and Level 5 autonomous vehicles. Manufacturers must demonstrate the safety of their vehicles to the Department of Transportation to get the green light to operate AVs. Vehicles carrying minors or hazardous materials need to have a human safety operator on board, the bill says.
Notably, Aurora Innovation Inc. (NASDAQ: AUR) and Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s (NYSE: BRK.A) subsidiary McLane Company recently shared that their autonomous trucking pilot reached 100% on-time performance across more than 280,000 miles.
The bill could provide a boost to AV semi trucks, including the Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) Semi, which is reportedly said to have an onboard Full Self-Driving computer.